Goal:
To conduct action research as a way to identify how classroom
activities can help students develop science concepts.

Background:
You are one of the best sources of information about what is
happening in your classroom. Far from being tainted by your involvement,
the new action research paradigm recognizes the unique and valuable
perspective of the practitioner who can thoughtfully reflect on classroom
events. Therefore, in Week A: Teacher As Researcher, you will observe what
you and your students do during an activity. To watch or hear yourself and
your students during an activity, you should videotape the class or record the
class on cassette. Jot down notes about what is happening. Or, ask a
colleague to observe the class. Use the key questions below to help you
reflect on how, what, and why students are learning.

How does the activity draw out what students already know and are
able to do?

How does the activity help students rethink and re-examine what they
know?

How is evidence of student learning generated during and after the
activity?

Learning by doing is enhanced by reflecting on the experience. When you
think about thinking, sometimes called metacognition, you consolidate what
you have learned. You have seen this process often enough with your
students. When they have to teach other students or present to an audience,
they take on the role of the other, considering the needs, interests, and
background of who they are trying to teach. That role helps them to objectify
their knowledgeto get it outside of themselves.

As long as knowledge is unexamined, people think it is accurate because it
is part of them. However, when they scrutinize knowledge, they begin to think
about its validity, reliability, and value. This reflection leads to knowing what
they do not know and wanting to know more.